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Post Emergency Shelter

Our FLL Team of 9-14 year olds came up with this idea to help rebuild after a typhoon.

The Post Emergency Shelter is a modular shelter made from pvc pipe and tarps. The shelter is light enough for two adults to carry and sleeps 4 adults. Basic food, first aid, and survival supplies are included. Tarps are fastened with elastic cording to allow movement and Velcro tabs to secure roll-up doors. All parts are stored in a large pvc tube that doubles as a rain barrel when the shelter is built. Rain from the roof goes through a water filter into the barrel. A hose bib on the barrel siphons water without dipping into it. Neoprene mats keep people from getting wet through the floor. Reflective tarp can capture or repel heat depending on application. Ventilation holes in the ends let heat out when needed. PES can be in place before a typhoon happens, surviving the storm in its tube, and is easily found by survivors. A fixed GPS transmitter helps to locate used and unused shelters.

The differences between this and a tent are obvious...this comes in a container that protects all supplies DURING a typhoon and doubles as a rain barrel for a fresh water rain catchment system. Does a "tent" do that? BTW...shooting down an idea with snarky comments is just lame.

This is a great idea. I have spent weeks in a tent, and this system would provide clear benefits over a tent (or TENT as some people spell it).

1) The neoprene floor would provide longevity, and would accommodate an irregular surface (including the inevitable mud) underneath.

2) The Velcro door (instead of a zipper) would also provide longevity. I know a tent's zippered door would not last 2 days with my family living in it 24/7. And 2-3 months could be necessary: So yes, give me velcro instead of a zipper.

3) Capturing the rain water is brilliant. (It's ironic that even after a flood, there's no drinkable water anywhere.)

This is head-and-shoulders above a tent. Keep up the good ideas.

Suggestions:

1) Make sure there's some kind of door threshold, to minimize mud entry into the shelter.

2) For long-term deployments, there are floor grid tiles that snap together (like for commercial kitchens) that would also help accommodate uneven surfaces under the shelter. The downside is that these tiles would add weight & bulk to a portable system, but they could always be added later, long-post-disaster, if necessary.

Hicktownmom: I sincerely hope you have a chance to prototype this, and possibly get some beta-test units out into the field for feedback.

I'm embarrassed to admit: I was adding my comments at O-dark-hundred and my brain cell was not functioning accurately, so I accidentally voted 'disagree' vs STRONGLY AGREE and I don't see a way to fix that. So just know that one of those 'disagrees' is actually an AGREE that's painted red. :)

(And the anonymity of the web can sometimes bring snarkyness. Snark happens.)

3) As I (and others) throw out these ideas, your project's design limits need to have a nailed down "max weight/bulk" to gauge if these subsequent ideas meet your own screen for how big each unit could be.

4) Some local power source: This could add many pounds, but after a significant event, the grid power may be out for weeks. Even a tiny solar panel would allow disaster victims to recharge their transistor radio, cellphone, etc, so they could get critical news - and guidance if subsequent evacuation is necessary.

The idea certainly sounds promising. Has anyone worked thorugh the supply side of the idea? Are these kits someting that individuals/families would purchase (whole kits or seperate parts and create their own), or would the kits be distributed post event?